Over 2,412 persons made blind by glaucoma, cataract and other eye issues have regained their sight. The patients regained their sight after accessing medical care at the David Umahi Federal University of Health Sciences (DUFUHS), Uburu, in Ohaozara Local Government Area of Ebonyi State.
The state-of-the-art university, which was established by former governor of the state and current Minister of Works, Engr. Dave Umahi, have been carrying out free treatment and surgery for eye patients for over six months now.
Patients from Ebonyi, Enugu, Abia, Delta, Imo, Kogi, Benue, Anambra and other parts of the country have been trooping into the university's ultra-modern eye centre and institute for eye health and visual sciences research centre for the free eye care of the institution.
Mrs. Theresa Idenyi was among the patients who accessed the free medical care recently. She said hundreds of patients have been coming to the centre daily to access the free eye care and that she has regained her sight after undergoing surgery at the centre in March this year.
She told Daily Sun that she was suffering cataract, which prevented her from going close to sunshine and stopped her from seeing, and commended the centre for restoring her sight. She said she was given eyeglasses after surgery at the centre, which she was using to enable her to see clearly but that she has since dropped the eyeglasses because her eyes are now okay.
She said: "I had eye surgery in this hospital in March this year and since then my eyes are okay. The only problem the university has is that patients come in multitude but they go home with testimonies. I am one of them.
"The university is trying so much and I pray God to continue to give them the knowledge and enablement because they have been treating us free, no charge.
"I was suffering cataract but I am now okay after the surgery in March this year. Before the surgery, my eyes were pouring water and I couldn't stay under the sun but since I underwent the surgery, those things no longer disturb me.
"The university even gave me eyeglass after the surgery. Without glasses, I am seeing very clear now. I just came to see an optometrist to confirm that I am okay.
"The university is really trying despite the number of patients that have continued to troop in for the eye treatment.
"When you come in, you write your name and they give you a folder. They will give you a small card and register you and you will see a doctor. It is not difficult to see a doctor here but the only thing is that patients are too many."
A retired civil servant, Okechukwu Ani, from Enugu State, who came for the care, said many people from his Mpu community who benefited from the free medical care, have been testifying that their eyes are now okay. According to him, it was the testimony that motivated him to come to the center to access his own medical care.
He disclosed that he had glaucoma in 2006 and underwent surgery in a hospital in Enugu State. He said after the surgery, he stopped having eye issues until a year now when he started having issues in his eyes again, which has led to his sight loss. He expressed the hope that the centre will restore his sight like other patients.
His words:"I heard about this free eye medical treatment and I decided to come to get treated. Since I came here, I have noticed something wonderful. Mere looking at what is going on here, I thank God for this programme.
"Before I even came here, testimonies of what has happened here, reached many from my place and I come with full faith that that I will be attended to. So, I am very eager to be attended to and they have just given me a card and I am waiting for them to attend to me.
"In 2006, I underwent glaucoma surgery and since then, I have not been finding it so difficult but recently, about a year now, the thing erupted to this problem that I find it very difficult to see.
"From the testimony that I have heard about this university, I do believe that before I leave here, something would have happened."
Dr. Amadi Oko Franklin, a consultant Optometrist at the centre said the university has world class machines that handle various eye cases, which led to the success stories that the eye patients are sharing about the center.
"In this eye centre, what we do is to examine the patients. After examining the patients, then, we can also carry out the surgery.
"In this place, we have what we call the phoropta. The phoropta is what we use to test the rifractic power of the patients. Rifractic power is needed for you to be able to see far and also near," he stated.
He identified power issues as the major problem the centre was facing and appealed to the federal government to come to their aid.
Another consultant, Dr. Denis Ugwu, also identified power as the major setback the university was having. He also named manpower as another challenge facing the university.
"We have our challenges: we have the challenges of manpower and we have people that are coming from afar with cataract and some of them have had it for over 10 years. But because of cost, they have not been able to access care.
"Now that they travel all the way from one of the remotest places to come to this place. Maybe being assisted by relations and church members concerning transport, once you leave them, they may go back and they may not have that kind opportunity again.
"And so, they end up with couches who will now further damage the eye and that's what we want to prevent."
Ugwu said the centre has resolved that any patient that presents any form of blindness in the eye center, must be treated before going back to his or her home. He disclosed that many factors are responsible for cataract.
"We have resolved here that anybody that presents any form of blindness should be able to access care and not be allowed to go back and get his or her case mismanaged by non-trained professionals.
"Cataract, depending on classification, has various causes. Children are born with blindness from maternal infectious like rubella, ploso platmosis. So, they naturally were born with that.
"Sometimes, it could be secondary, may be from a trauma. If for any reason something hits the eye, it could lead to cataract.
"People that have diabetes and some other systemic diseases, will naturally tend to have their cataract mature earlier than other people. Then, there are issues of infections affecting the inside of the eyes like UITs could also lead to cataract," he said.
Okonkwo Chukwuma, who is in charge of the unit that produce lenses for the patients, urged people with eye issues to avoid buying eyeglass on the road to avoid worsening the issues. He revealed that the unit has produced and distributed over 1,00 eyeglasses to patients.
"This is where we fix lenses into frames. Here is where we do finishing touches of glasses as you know it.
"We have given up to 1,000 glasses since we started eye services We don't advise people to buy eyeglasses anywhere they see. You have to go to an eye clinic, you have to check your eyes, you have to check your prescription and you have to make your glasses according to your prescription.
"We don't advise people to go and buy from anywhere else. You have to make sure that you are being given the prescription that suits you and not someone else
"We advise people not to just put anything they see in their eyes. They should keep good hygiene and make sure they check their eyes very regularly, like three months intervals, that will help us," he stated.
Vice Chancellor of the university, Professor Jesse Uneke, while conducting journalists round the eye centre, said at least 24 million Nigerians are currently living with sight loss.
Uneke, a Professor of Medical Parasitology and Health Policy/Health System, said findings from the Nigeria National Blindness and Visual Impairment Survey, shows that about 4.2% of Nigerians over 40 years old are blind, while an estimated 4.25 million adults aged 40 and above suffer from moderate to severe visual impairment.
The Vice Chancellor noted that 84% of blindness in Nigeria is due to preventable causes, stressing the need for regular eye checks, public awareness, and affordable treatment.
"Blindness in Nigeria is associated with increasing age, being female, and poor literacy. Sadly, 84% of blindness cases are due to avoidable causes," he explained.
He noted that cataracts and uncorrected refractive errors are the leading causes of visual impairment in the country, but conditions such as glaucoma, age-related macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy, infectious eye diseases and trauma also pose significant challenges.
The Vice Chancellor stressed that limited access to basic eye care in low- and middle-income countries like Nigeria worsens the burden of sight loss, particularly for rural dwellers.
To address the crisis, he said DUFUHS, with support from the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund), had established the Ultramodern Eye Centre and IEHVSR, a state-of-the-art facility for research, training, and patient care.
He said that through its Free Eye Care Initiative, the university has already provided free treatment to 2,412 patients since February 2025, including over 1,300 people with refractive errors and more than 600 with cataracts, while distributing 1,000 eyeglasses.
He noted that the programme was part of DUFUHS's mandate on research, training, and community development. According to him, the facility, supported by the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund), was established to address Nigeria's rising burden of visual impairment and blindness, which currently affects an estimated 24 million people.
"Our Free Eye Care Initiative has drastically reduced avoidable blindness and provided an opportunity for training, research, and patient care. From February to date, we have treated 2,412 persons -- 1,352 for refractive errors, 627 for cataracts, 168 for glaucoma, and 265 for other conditions. We also gave out 400 reading glasses and 600 prescription glasses free of charge," Uneke stated.
He emphasized that the DUFUHS Eye Centre operates with a multidisciplinary team of ophthalmologists, optometrists, nurses, biomedical engineers, and ICT experts working to improve access to eye care, especially for rural dwellers in Ebonyi State and beyond. He added that the Centre aligns with the World Health Organization's SPECS 2030 initiative, which seeks to expand access to quality, affordable refractive error services globally.
The DUFUHS Eye Centre's primary objectives, he explained, include enhancing accessibility to eye services in rural communities, increasing awareness of regular eye examinations, providing affordable solutions for the less privileged, and developing sustainable long-term strategies for vision care.
Uneke assured that the university would continue to strengthen its training, research, and community health programmes with the ultimate aim of reversing both medical and educational tourism.